


the rules of dragons

by redledgers



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Dragons, Gen, Spoilers for 79, well it could be worse right?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-30
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2018-09-13 10:38:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9119971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redledgers/pseuds/redledgers
Summary: As it turns out, dragons imprint.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [anomalocaris](https://archiveofourown.org/users/anomalocaris/gifts).



Suffice to say, this is not where he thought he would end up. He had definitely read things in books that eluded him at the particular moment he accidentally leaned against the only not destroyed dragon egg. He remembers some of them now:

  1. You should not touch dragon eggs with bare hands
  2. Should you touch one, you should immediately wipe off the area



He can’t remember the rest, but he can figure it out from context.

 

 

They keep the egg within the ziggurat to study it. When it’s not being studied, someone keeps watch—no one completely trusts its presence, but they’ve agreed to destroy it within 10 days of the battle. (No one seems to think putting it in the same room with the black orb is a bad idea, except for maybe Vax.) It’s only been two days, and now it’s Percy’s turn to guard it. He’s there for the better part of the afternoon before he hears tapping, cracking, and suddenly the egg is hatching and there’s no one around to call for help.

He makes it to the door by the time the small red dragon emerges, a pale almost translucent version of Thordak. It topples out of the egg and skitters toward him on uncertain legs. “You have got to be kidding me.” The dragons stops and sits as primly as it can. “You’re just sizing me up now, aren’t you," he says. “Of course you are. This is just great.” Before it can get any closer, he’s out the door, locking it behind him and wondering why he even bothered because gods there’s a _dragon_ in the basement of Whitestone.

The first person he finds in his haste is Keyleth, who is making her way down some hall. He skids to a halt in front of her, and she grabs his coat sleeve. “Percy! Is something wrong? Or is it someone else’s turn to watch the egg?”

“Th-the dragon egg, um, do you think we should find it something to eat? Or would a mercy killing be better?” They didn’t have protocol for this; no one had expected a dormant egg to hatch.

“It’s not…” Keyleth frowns. “Did it hatch? Is that a bad thing? Do you think it could be a good thing? We should tell the others.” She looks around, trying to assess the best direction to go in.

 

 

As it is, they can only muster whoever is still within the castle walls. They can hear the dragon scratching against the door, a sound similar to Trinket’s whine slipping through the cracks. “That’s interesting,” Allura says, pressing an ear to the door. “If I contain it when we open the door, it won’t get out into the castle before we can examine it.”

“We’re sending Percy in first.” Vax appears out of nowhere and nudges Percy’s shoulder. “I know you like tempting fate.”

And so Percy finds himself being the first one through the door, and when it’s shut and Allura’s released the dragon, it immediately ceases crying and dives toward him. “Oh gods, get it away!” he says sharply. He tries to step back, but the dragon follows.

Vex laughs. “Darling, it seems to really like you.” She leans against the wall beside Keyleth and watches. “Just like Trinket.”

“This,” Percy gestures to the dragon, “is nothing like Trinket.” No matter how hard he tries to escape it, he can’t stop it from following him about the room.

“Bring it over here,” Allura says, crouching. Percy does, and she reaches out to touch it. The dragon snaps weakly and coughs a ball of smoke at her, huddling near Percy. Allura looks up at him. “You didn’t happen to touch any of the eggs while you were in the pit, did you?”

His face pales, and the dragon curls around his feet.

“Dragons imprint, Percy. With the conclave dead, there’s no one to raise it.” Allura tries again to assess the creature, but it lashes out with its tail.

“Congratulations, dad,” Vax says wryly.

“It could be worse?” Keyleth’s hopeful tone didn’t make the situation any better because as soon as he got anywhere near the rest of them, the dragon hissed at them and skittered up the wall in a way that was decidedly creepy.

 

 

The dragon sticks around because it’s helpful and also because no one can get near it. Grog calls it Thordak Junior, and Vax threatens to give it the same treatment he gave it’s father if it ever attacks him. It grows and stomps around the castle, eating twice as much as Trinket and constantly setting everything on fire. Allura has to step in and fireproof everything. No one knows what to do with it, whether it would be better to kill it, drop it somewhere in the wild, or train it.

Vex hates it, of course she does, and it returns the favor with like attitude. She can’t even get close enough to kiss Percy without him scolding it. “I love Vex and you’re not allowed to hurt her! You should be nice to everyone, we let you live, you ass.” The dragon hisses and curls up under a table in his workshop, watching carefully (there was no way to keep it out as soon as it was smart enough to open doors, and Percy was hyper vigilant because there’s gunpowder in his workshop and a dragon that sometimes coughs fire is cause for concern).

She kisses him and then wrinkles her nose. “You’re right,” she says. “He’s nothing like Trinket.”

“Maybe when he gets past his adolescent stage? Next year perhaps, he’ll be easier to train, and might be able to speak.” Percy tries to enjoy being close to her, something that happens far less than it should right now, thanks to the belligerent lizard that has adopted him as father.

“I’m not waiting that long to have sex with you again,” she replies. “And if I catch it singeing my practice targets again while it tries to fly, I’m going to kill it myself.” She looks over at it and makes a face. “You hear that? If you don’t start behaving, I will have an arrow of dragon slaying made just for you.”

The dragon just stares back.


End file.
